


Chance Encounter

by dinosaurus_maj



Series: Walking Into Disaster [2]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Brotherly Bonding, First Impressions, First Meetings, Gen, Healing, I wrote this instead of doing my homework, I'm making a shipfic now I guess, Injury, Kinda, Monster food, Platonic Relationships, Prequel, Proofread, Razz pov, Shapeshifting, but mostly skimmed, idk what else to tag without spoiling it, it's an enchanted forest dun dun dun, not beta read but I die like a wimp, oop here we go
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-27
Updated: 2020-01-28
Packaged: 2021-02-27 14:20:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,177
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22428496
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dinosaurus_maj/pseuds/dinosaurus_maj
Summary: Little did his brother know, Razz had a strange encounter of his own.(Set before 'Did you steal my time or steal my money?')
Relationships: Papyrus & Sans (Undertale)
Series: Walking Into Disaster [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1614091
Comments: 2
Kudos: 15





	1. What the hell?

**Author's Note:**

> I have zero self-control so I'm making a shipfic now I guess.
> 
> I made this separate to the first one instead of making it another chapter because I felt like the pacing's better like this (also, this is set before 'Did you steal', maybe a few weeks earlier into the AU bros' life in the Undertale universe. Felt like it was too late to edit this into being the first chapter of that fic, and also I think it's be better to read _after_ that one? Idk read that and then this (or the other way around) and tell me what you think)

A twig snapped beneath his boot.

And another.

And another.

Sans didn't care. Or, as the others called him, 'Raspberry'.

Ugh. What a dumb nickname.

Another branch brushed past him. He clicked his tongue and swept his uniform. How bothersome.

They were all bothersome, even his own brother. Brothersome. Heh.

That was the reason he was in these woods in the first place. All that 'Vanilla' and the others had been doing had only gotten on his nerves, that blue one especially.

He pretended like he knew him.

Bullcrap. No one knew him. Not even his own brother. That was the reason he was still alive to experience Vanilla's Universal Screwup.

That was the reason he was here, somewhere completely unfamiliar and crawling with new dangers he was hardly prepared to face.

He knew nothing about this world. He knew nothing about the others. He had to be wary. He couldn't trust them. He couldn't trust the Surface.

...

The Surface. A wonder and a threat all the same.

Up here on the Surface, the sky stretched for miles overhead, constantly moving, constantly changing from light to dark. The world went on for miles and miles, long and endless, vast compared to the cavernous Underground he had lived in his entire life.

That life was gone now. Now, he had to protect the one he still had.

To do that, he had to get away. He had to think. The last few weeks had been nothing but constant panic, worrying, and uneasiness. At least the moving had distracted him, and he admittedly liked the mansion better than Vanilla's house that they had crowded. They had their own rooms and the extra space made it easy for him to avoid the others. Nevertheless, Vanilla's brother and his infuriating blue counterpart refused to give him his space for some unknown reason.

As a result of that, he had taken to his backup plan: the woods.

It was easy to lose them here. It was a place he could be just by himself and think. Not to mention, going into the woods gave him the chance to assess the surrounding land for dangers and plan traps. Vanilla had said that the area was secluded, private, and far from civilization, but that doesn't mean that there weren't any deadly dangers lurking in the woods waiting to snap up any unsuspecting little brothers.

He held no rank here, so he had to protect Papyrus _somehow._

He had been walking a long time now. He had easily scared off any wildlife simply with his presence, but that wasn't enough for him to be certain that they were completely safe. He just had a sort of eerie feeling in his chest the deeper he went, especially when daylight began to fade away and the reaching shadows of the trees stretched out farther.

He knew to trust his own gut, even if it was physically nonexistent, so he decided that he had done enough scouting for the day and to continue tomorrow in the daytime, when it would be harder for predators to ambush him. His brother was likely wondering if he was dead already at this point, fallen to the unknown dangers of the Surface.

Trudging _back_ through the undergrowth didn't prove to be as uneventful.

Looking ahead of him and focusing on the direction back, he didn't notice the big, fat root that was waiting to trip him up. He managed to catch himself with his hands to avoid from getting a face full of dirt, but he still cursed his own ignorance. He was better than that, dammit.

Quickly getting back onto his feet, he turned back to curse the tree root. Before he could, though, it recoiled and slid away into the dark like a snake.

Except... he didn't think snakes were as spiky. Actually, who knew, maybe snakes were spiky in this alternate world.

Do they growl, too? And... are their heads supposed to be that big?

Before he knew it, he was looking back into big, luminous, reptilian eyes. Warm drafts of air brushed over him as it breathed, and its lip curled threateningly, revealing rows of sharp fangs almost as long as his arm.

That wasn't a snake, was it? No, he'd stumbled upon something dangerous. Something big _and_ dangerous, living in his backyard.

Crap.

Sans stood there, frozen, his heels planted into the ground beneath him. His magic crackled and popped through his bones, fizzing and electrifying the air around him. The defensive magical reaction seemed to aggravate the beast before him.

It reared its head back and opened its maw, releasing the biggest, loudest roar he had ever heard. It was deafening and even knocked him off his feet. His magic reflexively reacted in defense, unleashing rows of bone attacks in its direction.

He heard loud thunks as his attacks met its hide, and then sounds akin to arrows piercing target boards. And suddenly, the mighty roar became one of pained agony, and then it stopped altogether.

Sans opened his eyes (when had he closed them?) and the creature was gone.

He searched his surroundings frantically. Where had it disappeared to? How did something as big as that _disappear,_ or at least, escape without making a single sound? Could it have dusted?

If it had, it obviously wouldn't be the first time he had dusted something, so he wouldn't be torn up about it. That thing was the the one that provoked him, anyway, so it's death was its own fault.

But he'd heard that living beings on the surface don't dust like monsters do. Could it have been a monster, then? What was a monster doing in their backyard? An enemy of Vanilla's, perhaps?

His thoughts were racing a mile a minute, and he could feel his Soul beating hard within him. He inhaled a shaky breath and clenched his fists. Stars, why was he so shaken up? All that thing did was roar. He's been in worse situations before.

He stumbled onto his feet, having to lean on a tree for support as the world spun around him. All he could hear was ringing, and his body felt like it was rocking like a ship on a restless ocean.

How did that thing leave him in such a state? He wasn't as weak as this, he knew. His inactiveness over the past few weeks must have left him in worst shape than he had thought. And, again, why did he feel so... terrified?

He glanced up again to look at where the creature was. There was only darkness there, as if it had never existed, but he knew it used to be there. The grass had been trampled, and he noticed that his attacks had been deflected and had instead embedded themselves in the trees and ground around him.

But one had hit.

He crept towards where the creature once stood and immediately took note of the lack of dust. One of his bone attacks lay in the clearing, it's pointed tip red with blood.

The only explanation was that it had fled, but how?

Shaking his head, he got up from his crouched position and continued on his way back to the mansion. Now he knew for sure he was right. The Surface was dangerous, and after encountering that beast his resolve was renewed. He had some traps to plan.

A patch of grass rustled behind him, but he paid it no mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter ended up shorter than I thought. Don't really like it, kinda sped through it because I really wanted to get to the next chapter (and need to get my homework done) and I'm pretty sure I butchered Razz's characterization and forgot some details like last time so I might heavily edit this in the future.
> 
> Please alert me of any typos, grammatical errors, and give me feedback/criticism if you have any <3


	2. Why so blue?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sans share some meatballs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol I'm tired but wanted to post this so HERE IT IS. I did not proofread it or edit it because i'm tired. I'll do that some other day.
> 
> For now, I wanna get on to the main story that I had Just Now come up with. If you're wondering why this story is split up so weird that's why. I came up with stuff and then I came up with other stuff I should've come up with before the stuff.

Sans ducked, dodged and blocked, each time narrowly missing a blunt attack that would shatter his bones on impact. If it weren't for his speed and prowess in battle, he likely would've dusted long ago.

What even _were_ these things anyway?

When he had gone to check on his traps after breakfast that morning (which just so happened to keep him away from the others) he hadn't anticipated that he would be in battle against the forest itself just a few minutes later. It began when he had found a gyftrot-looking thing (a deer, he recognised it as) with its leg caught in one of his bear traps. He was about to end it's misery when it turned out to not be a deer after all, but a living creature constructed out of bound twigs and branches to look like one.

It had turned its head in his direction and 'looked' at him with its acorns-for-eyes. Upon sighting him, its spindly legs of sticks had stopped struggling against the trap and it went stock-still as if it were in headlights. Maybe it felt threatened, or maybe it was just hostile, Sans couldn't be sure, but it suddenly unhinged it's wooden jaw and let out an ear-piercing screech.

Then, out of nowhere, a giant, wooden bear burst into the clearing. Unlike the deer, it was made out of large pieces of wood carved into the shape of a bear, each different part of its body made out of separate pieces. It had lunged towards the unsuspecting skeleton, but Sans had managed to dodge just in time before getting mauled.

He had no idea what these things were other than that they were some of the many horrors of the surface, but it looked to him as if the forest itself had come alive just to give him a bad time.

Dodging the bear was no trouble--the beast was as slow as a snail compared to him--it simply refused to go down, no matter how many attacks he threw at him. He had pierced and plunged multiple bone attacks through its wooden body, but it kept on going. An attack from one of his blasters would easily take care of it, but it wasn't as if it was giving him a chance to charge one up.

To make matters worse, the longer the battle went on the more the forest started to come alive; branches and leaves rose from the forest floor to form more wooden wildlife that went after him, and the tree roots and vines moved to grab at his arms and legs to hinder his movement.

The smaller creatures easily fell apart at a single strike and it was no task for him to break away from the trees' reaches, but the interruptions allowed multiple chances for his main opponent to make its move.

Like right then.

He couldn't move in time to avoid the swipe of its paw. Before he knew it, he was flying through the air. His body slammed hard against the side of a tree and he didn't miss the loud _crack!_ from his arm that happened right as he made contact.

He stifled a yell, digging his gloved claws into the tree bark. Glaring at his attacker that loomed over him, he dragged himself back onto his feet, powering through each flare of pain that came with each movement of his arm.

He's had worse injuries before. He can power through it. If they think they had weakened him, then they're wrong.

Bones flew out from the ground and pierced straight through the bear's body. It continued to pursue him anyway, snapping the bones from where they were on the ground and carrying them with it. It looked almost like an oversized hedgehog.

It paused when it was right in front of him. It then stood tall on its hind legs and raised its paw to strike again.

Sans waited for the blow to come down. His magic crackled through his bones, ready to shortcut him away at the last second.

And then it came...

Closer...

And closer...

And suddenly...

A loud bellow.

_C-C-CRACK!_

There was a flash of shimmering scales and splintering wood. The bear was thrown aside. There was a huge gouge in its side, but still, it got up to face its ambusher, a gigantic beast with skin made of armour and a spiked tail. The bear didn't even have the chance to take a single step before it was lit up like a bonfire.

The heat was intense. Sweat beaded on Sans's skull almost immediately. The living forest floor squirmed to catch the fire-spitter's limbs and hold it in place, but it took care of them with only a single breath of flame.

Then, it turned around to face the deer. There was no doubt that it was next in line in facing a fast, fiery death.

The deer lay where it was, it's broken leg useless in aiding in its escape. So, instead, in what appeared to be a defensive action alternate to its cry earlier, thorned vines curled up from out of its head and took the shape of antlers.

As the beast opened its jaw to release another burst of despairing inferno, the deer's antlers extended and curved in the larger creature's direction. When Sans thought that the flames would come first and destroy the deer's feeble attempt, the thorned vines whipped out and struck the beast within its mouth.

The beast roared in pain, and its attack came in short sputters of flame coupled with spills of blood, missing the deer completely. The deer then turned its head in Sans's direction, and before its antlers could grapple him, his blaster was already releasing a beam of pure energy that wiped it out in an instant, leaving nothing behind but ash and charred twigs.

With a hand rested on a tree for support, Sans straightened and assessed the battlefield. There was nothing left of his enemies except for ash and flame, which, with a whip of the fire-spitter's tail, died out easily. Shards of his bone attacks were scattered around, broken and burnt.

The fire-spitter panted and grunted, its head hung low. Blood dripped out of its mouth and pooled on the forest floor, a result of the deer's last resort. The beast turned its head, and its eyes met his.

Sans should've felt alarmed or threatened to be in the presence of a dangerous, fire-spitting beast, but instead, he felt... humbled. It was large and majestic, with a long, graceful neck and a crown of horns upon its head. Spikes ran down the length of its back to the tip of its tail, relaxing at the absence of a threat. A pair of leathery wings were folded at its sides, and he could only imagine what it was like when it took flight.

Since it had helped him (and didn't immediately attempt to chew on his bones afterwards), he found it only fitting that he thanked it.

He cleared his throat and began to say, "Creature, I--"

The creature suddenly lurched forward and groaned. The sudden movement caused for something hanging from it neck to catch his eye; a gemstone, hung from a leather cord that was wrapped around the creature's throat.

The beast went still and began to shrink. With each second, it grew smaller and smaller until it was the size of his palm, almost going out of sight with how small it was.

Sans neared it and crouched down next to it.

"Well, aren't you a strange, little... salamander?" Sure enough, it had shrunk down to a mere salamander, it's horns and wings gone and leaving behind a simple, unassuming lizard. It coughed, and blood spattered the dirt.

Something twinged within him at the sight. Pity? Guilt? He couldn't pinpoint it, but it compelled him to hold out his hand and allow the now-small creature to patter onto his palm. It looked back at him almost curiously with big, beady round eyes. He couldn't deny it; it was cute. He wondered if it would be offended if he said so, seeing as it was a ferocious fire-spitting beast just a moment ago.

"Worry not," he told it. "I know a shortcut to safety."

He stood up again, being careful not to jostle his injured arm or the salamander. He held the little creature close to his chest, angling his hand to shield it a bit so that it wouldn't be too shaken up by the sudden change in surroundings.

He mustered up some of his remaining magic and willed it to bend space, easily transporting him into the mansion's kitchen in less than a second. The shortcut left him a bit drained, more so than it usually would, but it's nothing he would pass out from.

The smell of pancakes still remained from breakfast hitting him immediately. It was a pleasant change from the earthy smell of the forest and burnt woodlife, though there were still faint hints of failed attempts in the air. He found a paper towel and laid it out on the countertop.

Sans moved to place the salamander on it but paused. It was nipping on his glove, staining the fabric with a darker shade of red. It did so almost frantically, or was it frustrated? He couldn't know for sure. He wasn't familiar with salamander body language.

He tried to put it down, but it stuck to his glove like a dog to a bone. He shook his hand but it didn't budge, now hanging in the air like a Gyftmas ornament. He then resolved to just pinching it's body and pulling.

It finally let go as soon as he applied pressure and began to squirm, waggling it's tail wildly and hissing. He dropped it onto the paper towel and it sprinted right off it and onto the uncovered counter. It stopped a distance away, its body heaving with fast breaths.

It must have not liked the shortcut.

Sans left it where it was, not finding it necessary to try and put it back on the towel. He'll just clean the countertop later. He began searching the cupboards and drawers for some monster food appropriate for a salamander. All he found were lots of sugary ingredients, pasta, snacks and various condiments. He was looking up whether or not a salamander could eat chocolate when the lights turned on.

"OH, RASPBERRY!" Blueberry exclaimed, making him jump. "You're back already?"

Sans scowled. "If I wasn't, I wouldn't be here, would I?"

Blue didn't acknowledge his rude reply and marched in with his grin intact.

"I actually thought that you'd take a lot longer to--Stars! What happened?" He saw his arm and gasped, rushing forward. "Are you alright--?"

"I'm _fine_ ," Sans huffed, swatting the other's hand away. "I came across something..." he glanced at the salamander. "... unexpected."

Blue followed his gaze and did a full one-eighty. He gasped again, his eyelights shimmering in his eyesockets as stars.

"Aww, you got a pet!" he squeaked, bending down and resting his hands on the countertop to look at it. The salamander jumped but otherwise didn't look very afraid, seeming calmer now.

"What? No!" Sans shook his head and composed himself. "I found it in the woods. It was injured, so I thought I might as well bring it back and give it some monster food before I send it back on its way."

"Aww!" Blue cooed again. "And here I thought you were _heartless._ Mweh heh heh!"

Sans didn't laugh. He turned to the fridge and continued his search there. Blue watched the salamander quietly for a bit before speaking again.

"Why don't you just heal it yourself?" he asked. Sans stilled, a bowl of cold meatballs clenched in his hand.

"I..." he trailed off. He went quiet for a moment before continuing. "...would rather not."

Blue must have sensed his insistence on dropping the subject, for he didn't prod on it. Instead, he only hummed and said "Okay."

Sans popped some of the meatballs into a bowl and placed it in the microwave. Instant food was likely as unhealthy to animals as it is to people, but he couldn't find anything else that wasn't either a choking hazard or toxic, so the salamander would have to settle for it.

Sans sat himself down on a stool to wait for the meatballs, keeping himself a good distance away from Blue. As he did, pain spiked from his injured arm and her flinched. This didn't go unnoticed, for Blue frowned and turned away from looking at the salamander.

"At least let me heal you." He said.

Sans glared at him and shifted further away from his reaching hand.

"No, thank you."

Blue scowled at his stubbornness and put his fists on his hips, giving him the image of an angry mother about to scold a child. "Razz, you can go run off into the woods and do Toriel-knows-what, but I'll have you know that if you come home injured--which you have--then there is no way I'm letting you walk around without getting any proper treatment. As long as we're living in the same world and under the same roof, I'll be looking out for you and everyone else here no matter what, whether you like it or not. Now,"

Blue held out his hand again much more insistently this time with a strict expression on his face.

"Let me heal you."

Sans stared at him before hesitantly switching stools and holding out his arm. Blue held it in a gentler manner than he would expect from anyone else but his brother, but he still didn't like the physical contact. Blue pulled his glove off his hand before holding it out over the injury. His hand began to glow green with healing magic and he slowly moved it up along the cracks on Sans's arm. The lines disappeared like dirt being cleaned, Blue's hand the towel or sponge that was wiping it away.

The tension lifted from Sans's shoulders and he relaxed as calmness and tranquility flowed into his bones and wrapped around his soul like a big warm hug. He found himself sighing in relief as the magic faded away, leaving behind only faint marks and an dull ache.

"That's all I can do for now," Blue told him. "You should be able to use it without any pain, or you can just heal the rest with some food."

"...Thanks."

Sans brought his arm close to his body again. He quietly examined Blue's work, feeling a bit envious towards his alternative self's skill. Even the salamander came forward to look at the result.

The microwave pinged, and he got up to take out the meatballs. Turning it off, he placed the bowl down on the countertop and ungloved one of his hands, noting how it didn't hurt to move anymore. He easily pinched out a small chunk of meatball with his claws and held it out to the salamander.

It crept forward and snatched the piece out of his claws, seeming to swallow it down instantly. Its forked tongue flicked out and licked its mouth. Sans chuckled.

"Ya like that, huh?" he said softly. He didn't notice the big smile Blue gave him as he gently petted the small creature's head with his phalange. Suddenly, the salamander sprinted out from under his touch and climbed up the bowl only to grab a mouthful of one big meatball. In a bizarre display, the salamander swallowed the food whole down its small gullet while the two skeletons watched in shock.

"Mweh heh heh!" Blue laughed after a long pause. He plucked a meatball from the bowl and tossed it into his mouth. "You've got quite the appetite, don't you, little friend?"

The salamander made a purring noise that could only be described as satisfaction.

* * *

Sans kept a wary eye as soon as he had made a shortcut back into the forest. After two whole meatballs, the salamander was well enough to patter around in circles and grab a mouthful of his glove, which he took as a good sign that it was ready to go back into the wild. He had actually feared that it would've grown big again and suffocate him and Blue in the kitchen, but thankfully that didn't happen.

When he was extra sure that the coast was clear of any woodlife, he bent down and settled the salamander down on a rock.

"There you go," he said. "Go on and be the strange Surface creature that you were meant to be."

The salamander regarded him for a moment before it skittered off the rock and disappeared into the underbrush. When he thought that it had run off completely, leaves shook and broke apart, making way for a rising beast. It's neck elongated and it's body widened. A pair of appendages grew out of its sides until they formed a pair of large wings that spread out wide. Spikes bristled on its back as it stretched it's body like a cat waking from a nap.

Large, intelligent eyes met his own and a warm breath brushed over his bones. The sight of it was almost overwhelming after looking at a small salamander for so long. He felt like he was in the presence of something much more ancient and greater than he was.

The creature cooed, bowing its head before turning and leaving him behind, staring after it. The surface was strange... he wondered if he'd see it again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This desperately needs edits i'm sure


End file.
